The Los Angeles Lakers were riding high after beating the team with the best record in the NBA, and their longtime rivals, the Boston Celtics, 114-105, on Thursday night at TD Garden.
It was just the third loss at home for Boston all season, but the Lakers suffered a loss of their own during the stunning upset victory.
Lakers' forward Jarred Vanderbilt left the game in the first half with a foot injury and did not return.
ESPN's Dave McMenamin, and NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski, reported on Friday morning that Vanderbilt is expected to miss several weeks, if not more with the right foot injury.
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Vanderbilt missed over a month at the start of the season, a total of 20 games, with a left heel injury, and sources told NBC LA that the current right foot injury is unrelated to the former injury suffered in training camp.
After returning to the court on December 2nd, it took a while for Vanderbilt to get back into game shape and develop a rhythm with his teammates on the court. Vanderbilt struggled in his first 20 games back from the injury, but had been hitting his stride in recent weeks, averaging 10.8 points and 5.4 rebounds off the bench in the Lakers' last eight games.
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Vanderbilt's resurgence on the court, including a mark of +30 while he was on the court in the team's double overtime victory over the Golden State Warriors last Saturday, led to a growing contingent of fans pushing for "Vando" to be reinserted back into the starting lineup.
Vanderbilt was a regular starter during the Lakers' playoff run to the Western Conference Finals last season.
McMenanin reported from Boston on Thursday night, that x-rays were taken of Vanderbilt's left foot after the game and were negative.
Vanderbilt's injury comes at both a difficult and potentially opportune time for the Lakers.
The team is struggling to keep their head above water, and are 9-15 since winning the NBA's Inaugural In-Season Tournament in Las Vegas in December. They are currently battling a plethora of injuries, with backup point guard Gabe Vincent, forward Cam Reddish, and superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis all out with injuries.
The latter two plays, both named to the Western Conference All-Star team in recent days, sat out they victory against the Boston Celtics, and are both listed as questionable for Saturday's showdown with the surging New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Vanderbilt is listed as out for that game.
There's no doubt that the Lakers are a better team on defense with Vanderbilt in the lineup. According to stats and analytics, the team is 4.8 points per 100 possessions better defensively when Vanderbilt is on the court.
Currently sitting at 25-25, the Lakers will have to hold on without Vanderbilt for the next six games before they will get eight days off for the All-Star break. That would give Vanderbilt a total of three weeks to rest and rehab the injury before the Lakers return to the court for the second half of the season against the Warriors in San Francisco.
